The Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court has recently released Vimpie Manthata, the owner of Instrumentation for Traffic Law Enforcement, along with two others on R10,000 bail each.
This comes in the midst of their ongoing tax fraud case. Manthata, along with Judy Rose, a tax practitioner employed by the company, and Daniel Rothman, a registered tax practitioner providing services to the company, are facing charges of fraud and contravention of the Tax Administration Act for the 2016/17 and 2018/19 tax assessment period.
The case has been postponed to May 6 for further disclosure. This development follows an alleged irregular awarding of a R191 million contract to Manthata’s company between March 2016 and March 2017. The contract involved fitting emergency lights, commonly known as “blue lights,” to police vehicles.
Former acting police commissioner Khomotso Phahlane, along with seven others, including Manthata and his company, are also facing charges of fraud, corruption, and forgery in connection with the same “blue lights” case.
According to Henry Mamothame, spokesperson for the Investigating Directorate (ID), the charges against Phahlane and his co-accused prompted an extension of the ID’s investigations into the tax compliance of Manthata’s company. The matter was subsequently referred to the South African Revenue Service (SARS) for a thorough probe.
During the investigations, it was discovered that some of the tax returns submitted to SARS contained false information. The taxable income and gross income reported by the company for the specified period were found to be falsified, resulting in a loss of over R27 million to SARS and the national treasury.
As the case progresses, further details and evidence will likely come to light. The release of Manthata and the others on bail marks a significant development in this complex and high-profile tax fraud case.
